BBC Breakfast host looks unrecognisable in throwback pics from forgotten role

Nina Warhurst is the face of BBC Breakfast (Image: BBC)

Nina Warhurst is known as one of the most beloved presenters on BBC Breakfast.  

The mum-of-three, 44, regularly presents the morning show every week alongside the likes of Charlie Stayt, Jon Kay and Ben Thompson.

But what fans may be surprised to learn is that before she became a TV presenter on the flagship channel, she had a surprising role on a well-known soap opera.

The TV star once played a “spiky teen” on Casualty back in 1997 – but looks completely unrecognisable in some of the resurfaced snaps. Back in 2022, Nina took to X – formerly known as Twitter – to celebrate the channel’s 100th birthday.

As she reflected on her career with the company, she shared some striking throwback pictures from her time on the medical soap back in 1997.

READ MORE: BBC Breakfast in presenter shake-up as familiar face is missing from red sofa

Her first TV role was on Casualty (Image: BBC)

Despite her impressive broadcasting career, Nina’s acting credit in the Christmas special of the show was her first on-screen role.

It’s fair to say the star looked dramatically different as a youngster, especially given the fact that her character landed herself in hospital and sustained several cuts across her cheek.

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She captioned the archive snaps: “Happy Birthday BBC! Howling at finding my first appearance with Auntie. Casualty... a spink teen in polyester, keeping boys a secret, causing parents endless headaches – very method for me in 1997.”

She later poked fun at her younger self in a follow-up post, adding: “And if you didn’t over pluck your eyebrows creating a vast chasm between the two, were you even there in the 90s?”

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It didn’t take long before her famous friends and fans flooded to the comments to poke fun at her previous role.

BBC Breakfast pal Naga Munchetty chuckled: “Love this! Who knew?” as her co-host Jon Kay demanded to see the footage, adding: “This is true TV gold. Where is the actual tape? We need to see it...”

Former BBC Breakfast anchor Dan Walker, who now works at 5 News, quipped: “No hi-vis?” After Casualty, Nina went on to appear in the British drama Heartbeat in 1998 and the two-part ITV miniseries Butterfly Collectors in 1999.

But after her acting spell, she entered into the broadcasting world with her first job at Russia Today, before moving on the Guardian’s Channel M, regional BBC channels and later BBC Breakfast.

BBC Breakfast airs every day on BBC One or catch up on BBC iPlayer.



BBC Breakfast host looks unrecognisable in throwback pics from forgotten role

BBC Breakfast host looks unrecognisable in throwback pics from forgotten role

BBC Breakfast host looks unrecognisable in throwback pics from forgotten role

BBC Breakfast host looks unrecognisable in throwback pics from forgotten role
BBC Breakfast host looks unrecognisable in throwback pics from forgotten role
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